VAT and invoicing in Ireland (2026)

VAT is part of almost every sale an Irish business makes: you add it to your invoices, reclaim it on your business costs and pay Revenue the difference every two months. This guide explains, for a small business owner, which rate to charge, when you must register, how returns work, what a valid VAT invoice must contain, how to correct one and what Revenue's VAT modernisation programme brings from 2028. Rates and dates are as of October 2026.

Irish VAT at a glance

Value-Added Tax (VAT) is administered by the Revenue Commissioners, usually just called Revenue. The rates in 2026:

From 1 September 2023 to 30 June 2026, restaurant and catering services, hot takeaway food and hairdressing were taxed at 13.5%. If you run a café, a restaurant or a salon, check that your tills and invoices switched to 9% on 1 July 2026, and that alcohol and soft drinks stayed at 23%.

Budget 2027, announced in October 2026, contained only small, targeted VAT measures, such as an intended 9% rate for certain livestock vaccines; they take effect only once the Finance Bill is passed.

When you must register for VAT

Registration is obligatory once your annual turnover (in a calendar year, excluding VAT) exceeds the threshold that applies to you:

Below the threshold you may register voluntarily, which is often worthwhile if you sell mainly to VAT-registered businesses and want to reclaim the VAT on your costs. Your VAT number appears with the prefix IE when you trade with businesses in other EU countries; check your EU customers' numbers in the European Commission's VIES tool.

Paying VAT when your customer pays: the moneys received basis

Normally you owe VAT on what you invoice, whether or not your customer has paid. You can apply to account for VAT on the moneys received basis (when you are paid) if your turnover is not likely to exceed €2 million in any continuous 12 months, or if at least 90% of your supplies go to customers who cannot fully reclaim VAT, such as private consumers.

VAT returns and payment

• Taxable periods are two months long: January–February, March–April, May–June, July–August, September–October and November–December.
• The VAT3 return and the payment are due by the 19th day of the month after the period ends. If you file and pay through ROS (Revenue Online Service), you have until the 23rd. The January–February return is due by 19 March (23 March through ROS).
• Other frequencies: traders with low VAT liabilities, and those paying by direct debit, may be allowed to file one annual return; traders who are usually in a repayment position can ask to file monthly.
• Return of Trading Details (RTD): once a year you also file an RTD, which breaks down your total sales and purchases for the year by VAT rate. It is made available in ROS with your year-end VAT3.

What a VAT invoice must show

You must issue a VAT invoice when you supply goods or services to another VAT-registered business, a government department, a local authority or another public body, a business with exempt activities, or a business customer in another EU country. You do not have to issue VAT invoices to private consumers in Ireland. The rules are in section 66 of the VAT Consolidation Act 2010 and Regulation 20 of the VAT Regulations 2010 (S.I. No. 639 of 2010). An invoice must show:

Special cases:

• Reverse charge (for example services to a business in another EU country): the customer's VAT number and the words “reverse charge applies”, with no VAT shown.
• Intra-EU supply of goods: the customer's EU VAT number and the words “intra-Community supply of goods”.
• Second-hand goods under the margin scheme: no VAT shown, and the endorsement “Margin scheme — second-hand goods”.

Deadline: issue the invoice within 15 days after the end of the month in which you made the supply (Regulation 23). For a supply on 3 March, the invoice is due by 15 April.

Numbering: each invoice gets a unique number in a sequential series. You may run more than one series, for example one per branch, but never reuse or skip numbers without a record of why.

Invoices in another currency

You may invoice in a foreign currency, but the amount of VAT must be expressed in euro (Regulation 20(8)), and Revenue asks for the euro equivalent on the invoice, converted at the Central Bank's selling rate at the time the invoice is due to be issued, or by another method Revenue has agreed with you and that you apply to all your foreign-currency transactions.

Correcting an invoice: credit notes and supplementary invoices

• Price reduced (an allowance, a discount or a return): issue a credit note within 15 days of the day the reduction is agreed, or for a discount, within 15 days of receiving the payment it relates to (Regulation 23). It shows its date of issue, a unique number, both parties' names, addresses and VAT numbers, the reason, a cross-reference to the original invoice, the amended amount and the VAT at each rate.
• Price increased: issue a supplementary invoice, not a credit note, cross-referenced to the original, within 15 days of the day the increase is agreed or paid, whichever is earlier.
• VAT overstated: you stay liable for the VAT shown until you correct it with a credit note and a revised invoice.
• VAT understated: issue a credit note for the full value of the original invoice and a revised invoice with the correct VAT.

How long to keep records

Keep all records relevant to your business, including invoices and credit notes, for six years. You need Revenue's written permission to keep them for a shorter period.

E-invoicing: Revenue's VAT modernisation timeline

Today a PDF invoice sent by email is valid in Ireland. Revenue's VAT modernisation programme, published in its updated timeline of July 2026, introduces structured e-invoicing and real-time reporting in three phases:

Revenue has not yet given a date for small businesses that only sell in Ireland to start issuing e-invoices. Even so, from November 2028 you must be able to receive e-invoices from large suppliers, so plan for a solution that can receive them, and later send them, in the format Revenue requires.

A worked example in euro

A small consultancy invoices €4,000 plus 23% VAT: €920 VAT, so the client pays €4,920.

Over the July–August period:

The VAT3 and the payment of €6,395 are due by 19 September, or 23 September if you file and pay through ROS. To find the VAT inside a price that includes 23%, multiply by 23 and divide by 123: €1,230 × 23 ÷ 123 = €230 VAT and €1,000 net. At 9%, a €109 restaurant bill includes €9 of VAT.

When your customers pay late

The European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 (S.I. No. 580 of 2012) apply to business-to-business and public-sector purchases:

• If the contract sets no payment date, payment is due 30 days after the customer receives the invoice (or after delivery, if the receipt date is uncertain or the invoice arrived first). Between businesses, payment terms longer than 60 days must be expressly agreed and cannot be grossly unfair to the supplier.
• You are automatically entitled to interest at 8 percentage points above the European Central Bank's reference rate, without sending a reminder. For July to December 2026 the statutory rate is 10.40% a year.
• On top of the interest, you are entitled to fixed compensation for recovery costs: €40 for an invoice up to €1,000, €70 above €1,000 and up to €10,000, and €100 above €10,000.

Public bodies must pay suppliers within 15 calendar days of receiving a valid invoice. Our guide on getting paid faster covers the practical side.

Common VAT mistakes

1. 1Missing the 1 July 2026 rate change: charging 13.5% instead of 9% on catering, hot takeaway food and hairdressing, or 9% on alcohol and soft drinks.
2. 2Using the wrong threshold: a business selling mainly services must register at €42,500, not €85,000.
3. 3Sending the invoice too late: the deadline is 15 days after the end of the month of supply.
4. 4Issuing a credit note for a price increase: increases need a supplementary invoice.
5. 5Leaving out the customer's VAT number and the reverse charge wording on sales to businesses in other EU countries.
6. 6Assuming the 23rd applies to everyone: the extension is for returns filed and paid through ROS; otherwise the deadline is the 19th.
7. 7Ignoring e-invoicing until 2028: you will need to be able to receive e-invoices from large suppliers from November 2028.

How Clientlly helps

Clientlly keeps your invoicing and your books in one place:

• sequential invoice numbering per series, with Ireland's VAT rates on every invoice
• credit notes linked to the original invoice
• invoice PDFs in your client's language, multiple currencies and a card payment link on the invoice
• you can see when an invoice was opened, and automatic reminders go out 3, 14 and 30 days after the due date
• recurring invoices for retainers and subscriptions
• receipts you scan have their VAT read automatically
• sales and purchase VAT books per rate, including exports, reverse charge and intra-EU purchases, and VAT reports for you and your accountant, with Excel and PDF exports
• importing clients, suppliers, products and opening balances from Excel or CSV, and a mobile app

See the invoicing module, the accounting module and pricing. When Revenue's e-invoicing phases reach you, you will need a solution that meets Revenue's e-invoicing and real-time reporting requirements for that part.